This Week In Animal Research: 7th-13th June

Suncream may delay the onset of melanoma, but it cannot completely prevent it according to new research using mice. Mice predisposed to melanoma and coated in SPF 50 sun cream took 30% longer to develop skincancer than those that were not. The researchers from the University of Manchester believe that this studycontributes important evidence on the need to take multiple sun protection measures.

Fasting for short periods at a time in mice and humans appears to assist with the 'regeneration' of theimmune system, helping the body to fight off infection. Researchers believe that this could help those patientswhose immune systems have been extensively damaged by chemotherapy or ageing, as "fasting cycles cangenerate, literally, a new immune system."

Exposure to fine particulate pollution during the early stages of post natal development has been linked tobrain abnormalities in mice that are consistent with schizophrenia and autism in humans. Air pollution causedinflammation in the brains of young mice, damaging the development of their white matter and causingdilation of the ventricles. Enlarged ventricles and high levels of glutamate neurotransmitter, also observed inthe mice, are known to occur in humans with both conditions. Male mice were more susceptible to damagethan female, which is again consistent with human observations showing that males are more commonlydiagnosed with schizophrenia and autism. While the researchers stress that air pollution is unlikely to be asole cause of these conditions, they hope that the findings will raise new questions about current regulatorystandards for air quality.

Mouse research has revealed that drugs already licensed to treat leukaemia could prove effective againstother forms of cancer. During the leukaemia human trials the unnamed drugs proved so effective that thosetaking placebos were immediately switched to the real drug. In a study published in Nature, the same drugswere shown to increase survival rates in mice across a broad range of tumours. Mice with breast cancersurvived almost twice as long as their untreated peers, and cancers also spread significantly less.

Genetically modified mosquitoes could crash the insects' population and contribute to the eradication ofmalaria, by creating an entirely male population. Researchers from Imperial College London injected malemosquitoes with a gene that causes the majoroty of offspring to be male, which lead to a dramatic decline infemales over the next six generations. While there are concerns about whether the genetically modifiedanimals would be able to mate as successfully as wild males, the reaction from the scientific community hasbeen overwhelmingly positive.

A robotic exoskeleton controlled by human brain activity featured during the opening ceremony for the WorldCup in Brazil, allowing a 29-year-old paraplegic man to perform the symbolic kick-off. Researchers from DukeUniversity Center for Neuroengineering, who formed part of the Walk Again Project, have previously shownthat implanted electrodes could allow both rats and monkeys to control simple robotic arms.